BUCKHANNON – Let’s get straight to my two flubs last week. We were supposed to play the Marshall-South Alabama game. The only problem was that the game is scheduled for this week. So, we had to toss that one out. The other goof was pointed out by my guest picker last week, B-U head coach Zach Davis. I listed Nitro as “My best team not to make the playoffs.” The only problem is they did, at No. 13 in Class AA. Oopsie.
With that out of the way, let’s see how Davis and I did with our postseason predictions.
You can view last week’s article here.
Our picks to win it all remain intact as Martinsburg and Huntington won easily and our Class AA pick, Fairmont Senior, survived an upset bid from Wayne.
Coach Davis’ two teams that he put on upset special both survived as Spring Mills and Winfield both moved onto the second round as did mine in Jefferson and Weir, so we were off with those picks.
Davis nailed his sleeper picks as both Bridgeport and Philip Barbour both advanced while I correctly picked the No. 14 Independence over No. 3 Roane but misfired on the Wheeling Park upset of Jefferson.
I appreciate coach Davis lending a helping hand last week and we will see how these things play out over the next few weeks.
In our weekly showdown challenge, my upset of GW didn’t come true against Bridgeport, and it cost me the lead. Brian and Katie both went 5-1 while I went 4-2 and Monica and Beckie both went 3-3. My GW setback puts me in a tie now with Brian as we both have 61-22 records with three weeks left.
A quick check of the My Buckhannon staff standings.
Name Week Overall
Duane 4-2 61-22
Brian 5-1 61-22
Katie 5-1 53-30
Monica 3-3 51-32
Beckie 3-3 47-36
In the Scoreboard Showdown this past week, we had one reader that was better than all the rest and that was our very own photographer Bobbie Hatcher who went 6-0. Congrats to Bobbie for a great week. This week’s games can be found here. Get your picks in before the games kick off Friday night.
Now, onto our games this week.
Philip Barbour (9-2) at Fairmont Senior (8-2)
The one game featuring two local schools. Philip Barbour made the long trip to Mingo Central last week and came away with an impressive win. Kudos to them. That said, I have picked Fairmont Senior as my eventual Class AA champion, so I think the Colts’s season comes to an end Friday night.
Duane: Fairmont Senior; Brian: Fairmont Senior; Katie: Philip Barbour; Monica: Philip Barbour; Beckie: Philip Barbour
Herbert Hoover (8-3) at North Marion (10-1)
These two teams met in the regular season with North Marion winning at home by a 21-14 score back on Oct. 20. I don’t see anything changing. Could we be heading towards an all-Marion county final between North Marion and Fairmont Senior? Maybe.
Duane: North Marion; Brian: North Marion; Katie: North Marion; Monica: North Marion; Beckie: North Marion
Cincinnati (3-7) at WVU (6-4)
Despite the debacle in Norman last week, WVU should get back into the win column against UC, a team that is struggling in their first year in the Big XII. I know everyone is on the fire Neal Brown bandwagon again, so this may be difficult to swallow, but if they beat UC and Baylor next week, they would be 8-4. For a team picked to finish last in the Big XII, that might just get Neal Brown Big XII Coach of the Year honors. Who else in the conference is deserving of the award?
Duane: WVU; Brian: WVU; Katie: WVU; Monica: WVU; Beckie: WVU
The Final Four:
Bridgeport (10-1) at Cabell Midland (10-1)
Duane: Cabell Midland; Brian: Cabell Midland; Katie: Cabell Midland; Monica: Bridgeport; Beckie: Bridgeport
Parkersburg (7-4) at Princeton (10-1)
Duane: Princeton; Brian: Parkersburg; Katie: Parkersburg; Monica: Parkersburg; Beckie: Princeton
Oklahoma State (7-3) at Houston (4-6)
Duane: Oklahoma State; Brian: Oklahoma State; Katie: Houston; Monica: Houston; Beckie: Oklahoma State
Marshall (5-5) at South Alabama (5-5)
Duane: Marshall; Brian: South Alabama; Katie: South Alabama; Monica: Marshall; Beckie: Marshall
